Taxes

It was probably the warmest day of the year so far today.  And how did I spend it?  Doing my taxes.  I filed my tax return, accompanied by the depressingly predictable huge amount of money I owed the taxman.  When you owe an amount that is in 5 figures, it is not a good day.  Because this amount of money is subject to a penalty fee, I've decided that I need to start making additional tax payments throughout the year so that I can avoid a similar kind of situation when I file my taxes next year.  I should also consider using a proper tax professional, rather than the fancy tax software that I currently use.  But I don't know if it will really make much difference, other than costing me more and saving me a bit of time.  If I want to reduce my tax bill, what I really need to do is buy a house.